The BBC brings us the 5th in this series with Stephen Fry. Episode One talks about colour, with David Hockney. Who better?

The next episode is about intonation. This is one I will be forcing on some of my Spanish clients. One of my aims from now to Christmas is to radically improve my clients´pronunciation and intonation, something which people here generally seem to give very little importance to! Good international business communication, people, is not the ability to fill-in-the-bloody-gaps!

‘Utopias aren’t chimeras, they are the most noble dreams that people have’ … Mayor Sánchez Gordillo. Photograph: Cristina Quicler/AFP

Last week, and not for the first time, Juan Manuel Sánchez Gordillo found himself in the Spanish headlines. Dubbed “Robin Hood” by El Pais, Sánchez Gordillo, the mayor of a small town in rural Andalusia, led farm labourers into supermarkets to expropriate basic living supplies: they filled trolleys with pasta, sugar, chickpeas and milk, left without paying, and distributed the loot to local food banks. His reasoning was blunt: “The crisis has a face and a name. There are many families who can’t afford to eat.” Continue reading →

A plethora of people, courses, and self-help guides profess to lead you by the hand to the promised land of business success. The problem is that things are always messier than the how-to’s make them out to be. This is why it is often better to consider less the specifics and more the principles and qualities that bring success.

In my experience — and in the research my co-authors and I did for our new book, Heart, Smarts, Guts, and Luck — there is one quality that trumps all, evident in virtually every great entrepreneur, manager, and leader. That quality is self-awareness. The best thing leaders can to improve their effectiveness is to become more aware of what motivates them and their decision-making.

Without self-awareness, you cannot understand your strengths and weakness, your “super powers” versus your “kryptonite.” It is self-awareness that allows the best business-builders to walk the tightrope of leadership: projecting conviction while simultaneously remaining humble enough to be open to new ideas and opposing opinions. The conviction (and yes, often ego) that founders and CEOs need for their vision makes them less than optimally wired for embracing vulnerabilities or leading with humility. All this makes self-awareness that much more essential.

That self-awareness is a critical factor for business-building success is not a new insight. The tougher code to crack is how to become more self-aware. Here are three key ways to do so: Continue reading →

Some years ago, I was chatting with a prospective employer, sharing tales of my experiences and selling him on the many reasons he should hire me, and doing it by using very specific examples. At one point in the conversation he turned quickly around in his chair and started furiously typing. As it turned out, he was Googling me mid-interview to learn if what I was telling him was true (it was true, and I snagged the job).

If this hasn’t happened to you in an interview, don’t think it hasn’t happened in one shape or form. Because even if you don’t witness them doing it, I can almost guarantee they do indeed, Google you.

What are they looking for? Not your Facebook page (although if you don’t have that blocked, they will definitely enjoy the read). Not your dating profile (if they did, that‘s actually über creepy). Instead, what they’re looking for is your online professional presence. And in today’s world, you need to have one out there for them to find.

For many (and I dare say, most) professions, an online professional profile will only help you. And until someone rolls in with something better, the best place to go to build one is LinkedIn.

If you have a profile on LinkedIn already, kudos! But this isn’t really about that. You should have already created one of those years ago. If you haven’t, you should Google around for some tips and tricks for building a great page. Then circle back over here.

This is about using your profile correctly — and to your advantage. Because in the corporate world, people read into things. Including the things you’re doing on sites like these. So here are the top eight things you might be doing wrong on LinkedIn.

1) You don’t have any recommendations. If a hiring manager is scoping out your LinkedIn profile and doesn’t see a recommendation, they might think, “Hmm…no one likes their work,” or “They must not have impressed anyone,” or even, “Umm, this is a dud networker.”

The Fix: Get some recommendations, duh.If you haven’t tried it yet, that’s your homework for today. Send out a request for a recommendation to at least five people you’ve worked with or currently work with (check your company policy). You’ll be surprised at how willing, honest and complimentary people will be of your work (granted, that’s if you’ve impressed them in the past – I don’t recommend you sending a request to an enemy). Continue reading →

Why have you been so successful in reaching some of your goals, but not others? If you aren’t sure, you are far from alone in your confusion. It turns out that even brilliant, highly accomplished people are pretty lousy when it comes to understanding why they succeed or fail. The intuitive answer — that you are born predisposed to certain talents and lacking in others — is really just one small piece of the puzzle. In fact, decades of research on achievement suggests that successful people reach their goals not simply because of who they are, but more often because of what they do.

1. Get specific. When you set yourself a goal, try to be as specific as possible. “Lose 5 pounds” is a better goal than “lose some weight,” because it gives you a clear idea of what success looks like. Knowing exactly what you want to achieve keeps you motivated until you get there. Also, think about the specific actions that need to be taken to reach your goal. Just promising you’ll “eat less” or “sleep more” is too vague — be clear and precise. “I’ll be in bed by 10pm on weeknights” leaves no room for doubt about what you need to do, and whether or not you’ve actually done it. Continue reading →